OSE_1309_part3_Layout 1 9/6/13 12:21 PM Page 136
TEAM COMMUNICATION The circulating
nurse should use active-response questions,
such as, "What is the name of the patient?"
Get the Most
Out of Your Time Out
Construct time outs so that your surgeons and
staff are engaged. John R. Clarke, MD | Philadelphia, Pa.
W
rong-site/-side/-patient surgeries occur about once per 58,000
cases. The figure is about 1 in 13,000 when you're talking
about anesthetic blocks, and 1 in 4,000 for ureteral stents.
Compare those numbers with OR fires, which occur approximately 1 in
every 300,000 surgeries. We can and must improve, at least to 1 in a million — though zero is always the goal.
Why do wrong events still occur? First, although the solutions from the
Joint Commission — the 3-step Universal Protocol — represent common-sense solutions, they're not based on scientific study, and didn't
identify the best practices that prevent wrong-site surgery. Another reason is that providers are not aware of, or choose not to follow, best practices, so that they end up going through the motions of the Universal
Protocol, but in a way that's not effective. For example, many time outs
consist of "This is Mary Jones. We are doing a right knee arthroscopy.
Does everyone agree?" followed by no response. I have personally
1 3 6
O U T PAT I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E | S E P T E M B E R 2013
